By Hans Roeben and Sally Huse

Our Chef Ian enjoyed a sail on the bay this summer. He turned out to be a good helmsman aboard Helgoland. While sailing we asked him about his life and here is part of the story.

Ian was born and raised in the Chicago area, the son of a doctor. He attended New Trier High School and later earned a degree in theater from the University of Denver. He also completed course work for a Masters in communication from Loyola University.

He met his wife Beverly in 1975 in LA and lives in Novato with her and their two boys, aged 20 and 14. The 20-year-old son is attending Sacramento State majoring in Computer Science.

How did he get started in cooking? It started with wine, candles and a Dr. John recording and a recipe for gumbo. The wine was for drinking, not cooking he emphasized. In 1984 he won a gumbo contest. He started working out of his home with various caterers and then moved to several bay area restaurants including the Velvet Turtle in Pleasanton, Olaveto's in Oakland and the Casa Madrona in Sausalito. His first visit to Corinthian was in August of 1990 and in October 1991 he became chef with Corinthian Catering Inc.

In 1998 he received the Chef of the Year Award from the Chefs Association of the Pacific Coast. He is certified as an Executive Chef by the American Culinary Federation and is an active member of the Chefs Association of San Francisco. Ian thinks working at the club is a great job, with good people, a great view, and most of the activity scheduled on the weekends. It is a mystery to most of us how he and his crew can produce the quantity and quality of superb meals out of the small kitchen at CYC. The most meals produced in one day were 600 with 6 cooks. Ian's hobbies include riding his bicycle and Harley motorcycle. He also has a small powerboat.

The Corinthian cruisers probably have had the most exposure to the cuisine of other yacht clubs. Most of us feel we are very lucky to have Ian as our chef. Maybe it is the degree in theater that makes him a tough act to follow. Ian is always open for menu suggestions, compliments and complaints. If there are any problems, please call him at 435-4812 so he can take corrective action.

Some of us enjoyed the cooking classes he taught several years ago. If there is enough interest, Ian indicated he would be willing to do it again.

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